A cobpoeation of massachu



Nov. 5; 1929. E. F. BALDWIN HARNESS MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Original Filed Dec. 12- 1921 Ink Patented Nov. 5, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE EARL F. BALDWIN. OF GARDNER, MASSACHUSETTS, AS SIGNOR TO AMERICAN FIBRE CORPORATION, OF GARDNER, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHU- SETTS HARNESS MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Original application filed December 12, 1921, Serial No. 521,624. Divided and this application filed November 25, 1922, Serial No. 603,340. Renewed April 27, 1928.

This invention relates to looms more especially designed for weaving fiber such as strands formed from paper strips, this ap plication being a division of my application filed December 12, 1921, Serial No. 521,624 for looms and relating more particularly to the harness mechanism whereby the gripping of the pick by the warp strands or threads may be made to occur progressively from or toward the center of the edges of fabric width. as may be desired in accordance with the condition of the fiber.

Further objects and advantageous details and combinations of parts will appear from a more complete description of an embodiment of the invention thereof disclosed in the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a front elevation somewhat diagrammatic of the harness mechanism and related parts.

Figure 2 is a detailed section on line 2-2 of Figure 1. i

Referring to these figures, the filling is laid by a pair of needles, one of which is shown at 16, which enter the shed from opposite sides,the strand end being gripped by the needle 16 and carried substantially half way through the shed and there delivered to the mating needle, which on its retraction, completes the laying of the pick. While the laying of the pick is being com pleted in this manner the needle 16 also retracts to the position shown in Figure 1, whereupon the cutting blades 18-1 and 185 are caused to sever the pick thus laid fromthe remainder of the strand. The end of the strand back from the cut projects from the end of the needle 16 in position to be gripped by the opposite needle in a succeeding pick laying operation. This action of the mechanism is more fully shown and described in the parent application hereinbefore referred Back of the paths of the picker needles is the shedding mechanism. As shown this mechanism comprises a series of harness frames which are positioned in pairs end to end as shown at 200, 201 and 202, 203, 200 and 201 being the forward frames and 202 and 203 the rearward frames. These frames carry the heddles for supporting and controlling the motion of the warp threads or strands in the usual manner, these being indicated for the forward frames at 204 and for the rearward frames at 205. By relative up and down movement of these frames the shedding action is caused to take place. As when the fiber for which this machine is designed is dry it is brittle, this invention provides means whereby the shedding and closing of the shed may take place progressively between the center and edges of the fabric. By this means the pick as laid is gripped by the warp strands near the center of the fabric as it is being beaten into place so that it may draw inwardly toward the center to conform to its crimped condition in the finished fabric, this condition being caused by passing alternately over and under the warp strands. As the closing of the shed takes place progressivelythe crimping also takes place progressively and avoids the 1ia-' bility of breaking the strand due to the tension imposed thereon by this action. Should the strand be wet, however, and in somewhat soft condition, it is possible to change the sequence of shedding so thatcrimping by the warp strands takes place progressively from theedges of the fabric toward the center. This progressively grips the pick from its ends inwardly, preventing the drawing in wardly thereof and causes the strand to be stretched as it is beaten into place. For the purpose of effecting this progressive action the harncssframes are formed in a pair of sections, positioned end to end across the width of the fabric as iust described so th t the timing of the shedding between the center and the sides of the fabric may be varied. For the purpose of actuating these frames in this manner, each frame has depending from its lower edge adjacent its end, an arm 206 to the lower end of which is pivoted, as shown in Figure 1, the upper end of a bar 207. These bars are made fast at their lower ends in eccentric straps 208 of eccentrics 209 fixed to rotate with a shaft 210 which extends through end frames. Positioned intermediate these frames is a bracket 211 arranged parallel therewith and in opposite side faces of this bracket and on the inner faces of the frames are vertical guides for guiding the several frames in their vertical movement.

The eccentrics for actuating opposite ends of each mating pair of harness frames may be adjusted so as to cause the mating inner ends of these frames to move somewhat ahead or behind the outer ends of these frames the stroke of both ends having the same amplitude. This causes the shedding and closing of the shed to take place progressively as indicated in Figures 1 and 2 where it is noted that the openings in the heddles 20 i and 205 are more widely spaced centrally where the pairs of frames meet than at their ends indicating that the closing of the shed is nearer complete at that point than at the sides of the fabric. This is indicated in Figure 2 wherein the strands a controlled by the front and back harness frames 201 and 203, are more widely spaced than the strands 6, b, 0, 0, (Z, (Z, c, e, positioned progressively further from this point and nearer one side of the fabric. This causes the pick, indicated in section at w in this figure, to be more tightly engaged by the strands a, a than the remaining strands which are progressively less in engagement as they are further away from strands a. As the two ends of these frames have the same amplitude of motion, however, it is evident that the strands b, 0, (Z, and 6 will successively assume as wide open a position as the strands a but at a later period. This progressive action is believed to be broadly new and is regarded as a valuable feature of this invention since it permits fiber of various degrees of dryness to be han dled successfully, allowing the tension errerted thereon to be regulated to accomplish the best results. After each pick is laid and cut it is suitably beaten into place in the usual manner. The shaft 210 which actuates the harnesses is driven byany suitable means to properly time the harnesses with the other mechanism. 7

Having thus described certain embodiments of this invention it should be evident to those skilled in the art that many changes and modifications might be made therein without departing from its spirit or scope as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a loom, shedding mechanism comprising harnesses, and mechanism for actuating said harnesses to cause closing of the shed to take place progressively in opposite directions between the sides and center of the shed.

2. In a loom, shedding mechanism comprising a plurality of harness frames positioned endwise across the shed, certain of said frames being arranged end to end, and means for actuating said frames to effect closing of the shed at different times at dif ferent portions of the shed.

3. In a loom, shedding mechanism comprising a plurality of harness frames positioned endwise across the shed, certain of said frames being arranged end to end, and means for actuating opposite ends of said frames in different time to effect a progressive closing of the shed over the portion of the shed effected by each frame.

l. In a loom, shedding mechanism comprising a plurality of sets of harness frames positioned end to end across the shed, and means for actuating opposite ends of said frames in different time to efiect a progressive closing of the shed over that portion of the shed effected by each frame, the time actuation of adjacent ends of a pair of end to end frames being identical whereby closing of the shed occurs progressively in opposite directions with relation to said ends.

5. In a loom, shedding mechanism comprising a plurality of harness frames arranged in pairs, the frames of each pair being arranged end to end and together extending across the shed, and means for moving said frames to efiect the closing of th shed earlier at one end of each frame than at the other end thereof.

6. In a loom, shedding mechanism comprising a plurality of harness frames ar-' ranged in pairs, the frames of each pair being arranged end to end and together extending across the shed, and means for moving said frames to efiect the closing of the shed earlier at one end of each frame than at the other end thereof. 7

7. In a loom, shedding mechanism comprising a plurality of harness frames arranged in pairs, the frames of each pair being arranged end to end and together extending across the shed, and means for moving said frames to efiect the closing of the shed earlier at one end of each frame than at the other end thereof, adjacent ends of each pair of frames being moved in synchronism.

8. In a loom, a series of pairs of harness frames, the frames of each pair arranged end to end and extending across the shed, an actuating shaft, cams on said shaft, and connections actuated by said cams to each end i of said frames for efiecting shedding, the cams acting on the adjacent ends of each pair of frames being timed differently than the cams acting on their non-adjacent ends.

9. In a loom, means for supporting a signature.

EARL F. BALDWIN. 

